You might never need a contouring kit again

If you’ve tried and failed at mastering contouring, even after spending hours watching Kim Kardashian explain how she does it, you can put your brushes down now. There’s a new hair colouring technique in town that’s trumping ombre and balayage, and promises to accentuate your features. The plus: you won’t need to lift a single make-up brush. Just look at Gigi Hadid or Jennifer Lopez and you’ll know it works.

Colourist Rod Anker calls it “plastic surgery using your hair!” “Just like make-up contouring,” he explains, “it is a method of placing certain colours in a certain way to either enhance a certain feature of your face or draw attention away from it.”

Here’s what to tell your colourist, based on your face shape:

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For oval faces

If you have a long face and want to create the impression of width, Anker says, “It’s about creating lighter shades on the lower lengths and underneath the sides, while adding deeper or darker shades on the top to give the illusion of a slightly wider face.”

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For round faces

You can balance the curves by creating faux angles. “The goal here is to stretch out the look,” says Anker, “Add depth to the ends and lighten around the hairline. This will give you a more elongated look.”

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Image: Shutterstock

For square faces

With boxy shapes, Anker feels it’s all about managing proportions. “You accentuate the length and soften the lines using lighter and darker shades around the ears, which adds interest and softness.”

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Image: Shutterstock

For heart-shaped faces

When the jawline is a problem area, Anker recommends, “lightening [strands] around the jawline to soften the lower section of the face. The top layers should also be slightly lighter to draw the eyes away from the width.”

Hair contouring is also the antithesis to block colour, a colouring technique many Indian women favour. And it’s one you should unequivocally avoid. “No one has the same colour on every strand on their head from roots to ends,” says Anker, “It looks incredibly artificial. With hair contouring, it’s about layering the right colour in the right way to create harmony that results in a balanced look.”